Coach Rehab and Rescue Club

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#2,566
4213jen said:
Ok, so the dance has slowed a little. I discovered a couple of undisclosed slices in the leather of the burgundy tote. They are not all the way through and are about half in inch in length. They are very clean, just like a blade cut to the leather. There are two of them right near each other at the top rear of the bag. My question is - should I put a little glue in the slices to hold them together, so that they don't become holes? Should I do this before or after I condition the bag?

Next question - after using a liquid saddle soap on this bag, I have succeeded in enhancing the stains/ dark marks and lightening the overall colour. Bummer. I would like to darken the leather to minimise the stains, but can't get blackrocks here. Does anyone know the components of blackrock? I have some medical grade pure lanolin, and Coffee&Coach suggested that lanolin and animal oils in general will darken leather. I know you have said olive oil, Angelaira. You use olive oil on your bags don't you?

Any suggestions? I can't post any pics until Monday, but would love to hear your suggestions and opinions.

The bag is still wet at the moment and maybe she will dry better than she looks at the moment, but the cleaning process has exposed some blue paint spots as well as various old splashes of something dark and streaky.

This old girl has had a hard life and is in great need of tlc
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oh darn...i'm sorry to hear that. I was excited you'd been able to fix the loosened kisslock leather. t's so hard to buy bags sight unseen isn't it! but I bet you'll make her better!. I wish I knew more about oil/conditioners!!
 
#2,567
4213jen said:
Ok, so the dance has slowed a little. I discovered a couple of undisclosed slices in the leather of the burgundy tote. They are not all the way through and are about half in inch in length. They are very clean, just like a blade cut to the leather. There are two of them right near each other at the top rear of the bag. My question is - should I put a little glue in the slices to hold them together, so that they don't become holes? Should I do this before or after I condition the bag?

Next question - after using a liquid saddle soap on this bag, I have succeeded in enhancing the stains/ dark marks and lightening the overall colour. Bummer. I would like to darken the leather to minimise the stains, but can't get blackrocks here. Does anyone know the components of blackrock? I have some medical grade pure lanolin, and Coffee&Coach suggested that lanolin and animal oils in general will darken leather. I know you have said olive oil, Angelaira. You use olive oil on your bags don't you?

Any suggestions? I can't post any pics until Monday, but would love to hear your suggestions and opinions.

The bag is still wet at the moment and maybe she will dry better than she looks at the moment, but the cleaning process has exposed some blue paint spots as well as various old splashes of something dark and streaky.

This old girl has had a hard life and is in great need of tlc
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear of the problems, I would try using a little fabric glue that is approved for leather (you can get it a fabric store, or hobby store, or maybe even a hardware store). I would apply the glue and let it dry before conditioning.

Blackrocks has some kind of wax in it that supposedly is the reason it darkens bags a bit. I will try and find the information for you. LadyRaven says that Obenauf's also darkens the leather, is that available in Australia? Is there a tack shop near you? They may have the products you need.

Edit: Here is the link for blackrocks it contains carnauba wax -whatever that is!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Blackrock-Leather-N-Rich/133531666682247?sk=info
 
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#2,568
Charmeh said:
Please do so... :D
Wash it how? With soap? Lol.

I want to see if washing the wallet would damage the feel of the leather or make it smaller or bigger in anyway..

But my main concern is taking away the smell. :yucky:

****I just used this item listing for an example, I did not buy this item from the seller magnoliavintage****
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angelaira said:
To wash the wallet you would just put it in the sink and fill it up with water and let it soak. Some people use Dove soap, some use bar soap, it just depends. The older Coach leathers are usually rejuvenated by this process and come out looking great, they are not usually damaged by it. I should get my wallet in the next few days, and when I do I will wash it and post some photos so you can see the before and after and the process. Hopefully then you can figure out what to do with yours.
Click to expand...

I usually use Ivory dish soap and warm water and then rinse well and shape the wallet nicely while it dries on a towel and then condition. Wallets take a long time to dry!
 
#2,569
4213jen said:
Ok, so the dance has slowed a little. I discovered a couple of undisclosed slices in the leather of the burgundy tote. They are not all the way through and are about half in inch in length. They are very clean, just like a blade cut to the leather. There are two of them right near each other at the top rear of the bag. My question is - should I put a little glue in the slices to hold them together, so that they don't become holes? Should I do this before or after I condition the bag?

Next question - after using a liquid saddle soap on this bag, I have succeeded in enhancing the stains/ dark marks and lightening the overall colour. Bummer. I would like to darken the leather to minimise the stains, but can't get blackrocks here. Does anyone know the components of blackrock? I have some medical grade pure lanolin, and Coffee&Coach suggested that lanolin and animal oils in general will darken leather. I know you have said olive oil, Angelaira. You use olive oil on your bags don't you?

Any suggestions? I can't post any pics until Monday, but would love to hear your suggestions and opinions.

The bag is still wet at the moment and maybe she will dry better than she looks at the moment, but the cleaning process has exposed some blue paint spots as well as various old splashes of something dark and streaky.

This old girl has had a hard life and is in great need of tlc
Click to expand...
Here's my two cents - for the glueing, I would use very little so that it does not get on the leather when you squeeze it together, it can cause white marks and just a different texture to the leather. I would definitely glue it with leather glue that dries clear and again, only use a tiny bit.

I have no advice for darkening, so others can chime in on that one.
 
#2,571
That's another issue my poor red city bag has. fortunately the slashes aren't very deep and not worth glueing. Unfortunately they are in a visible area. I am close to done with her and will probably post pix sometime soon.

I left both her and my basic bag to absorb a coat of Black Rocks this morning when I left for work. I think the Basic bag is going to turn out looking great, and the City bag is probably as good as she will get. I think the real issue is the top of the bag is very scratched and has that little slice in it. It's in a visible area. Now that the conditioner is sinking in the scratches are MORE noticeable, I'm hoping once it's absorbed it will be less so. We'll see.

And I need to say one more time how much ONE COAT of the apple conditioner softened up the basic bag. It really felt like cardboard, now it's soft and supple.
 
#2,573
Nekolassa said:
Feeding your addictions right now, Bonnie Cashin Guitar Strap on Ebay right now http://www.ebay.com/itm/COACH-OMG-E...253?pt=US_CSA_WH_Handbags&hash=item3cc5cf36a5.

Sorry for anyone that was trying to be good!
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yep that's been on my watch list! But they always get more expensive than I want to pay...OR :mad: I'll find a bag I've wanted and wanted for ages, only to have its auction due at about the same time as about 5 other bags I've wanted and wanted, and I can't afford them all so I end up missing the boat and pining away about the bags that "got away"......murphys law for me I guess
 
#2,575
4213jen said:
Ok, so the dance has slowed a little. I discovered a couple of undisclosed slices in the leather of the burgundy tote. They are not all the way through and are about half in inch in length. They are very clean, just like a blade cut to the leather. There are two of them right near each other at the top rear of the bag. My question is - should I put a little glue in the slices to hold them together, so that they don't become holes? Should I do this before or after I condition the bag?

Next question - after using a liquid saddle soap on this bag, I have succeeded in enhancing the stains/ dark marks and lightening the overall colour. Bummer. I would like to darken the leather to minimise the stains, but can't get blackrocks here. Does anyone know the components of blackrock? I have some medical grade pure lanolin, and Coffee&Coach suggested that lanolin and animal oils in general will darken leather. I know you have said olive oil, Angelaira. You use olive oil on your bags don't you?

Any suggestions? I can't post any pics until Monday, but would love to hear your suggestions and opinions.

The bag is still wet at the moment and maybe she will dry better than she looks at the moment, but the cleaning process has exposed some blue paint spots as well as various old splashes of something dark and streaky.

This old girl has had a hard life and is in great need of tlc
Click to expand...

Yes, I have used extra virgin olive oil on a few of my bags, the most hopeless ones that needed darkening. It will darken about two shades, so test it first, and as it dries it will lighten up quite a lot depending on how dry the bag is. I took some pics this morning of two bags I used olive oil on so you can see what they look like today. I also had my husband smell them to see if he could tell any difference in those bags, the only difference is that one smells like Tide from where I washed it in the washing machine with Tide, lol... the olive oil has left no smell or residue that we could discern. Both bags now retain their moisture, and look much better than when I first started with them, and if you scroll down in my blog you can see how dark the first application of olive oil was on the tan bag, it was almost like coffee brown when first applied because the bag was so dry.
Here is a link to the entry I made just so you can see:
http://coachbagrehab.blogspot.com/2012/05/extra-virgin-olive-oil.html

As far as slices in the bag, I would maybe try sealing them with matching acrylic paint because it is much more predictable than glue will be, and it will hold something like that together. Glue might darken too much or get where you don't want it. I would put the acrylic into the slice, push it tightly together, then wipe away any excess with a paper towel. And, I would do this after all drying and moisturizing, so that you can get a good match, like a week or so after....
 
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#2,576
hello everyone! I'm trying to rehab my first pre-owned willis so please bear with me :)



i just received a pre-owned willis that came from a smoking home, and the smoke smell bothers me more than i expected. I'm also trying to smooth over/fill in a scuffed corner and remove some pen stains.

could someone please enlighten me on what a bath does for the bag? would a bath take away the smell and help remove the stains? i have not tried bathing my bags yet and am pretty nervous about it - i should just soak them in gentle soapy water for a bit right?

thank you!
 
#2,577
jfzmwz said:
hello everyone! I'm trying to rehab my first pre-owned willis so please bear with me :)



i just received a pre-owned willis that came from a smoking home, and the smoke smell bothers me more than i expected. I'm also trying to smooth over/fill in a scuffed corner and remove some pen stains.

could someone please enlighten me on what a bath does for the bag? would a bath take away the smell and help remove the stains? i have not tried bathing my bags yet and am pretty nervous about it - i should just soak them in gentle soapy water for a bit right?

thank you!
Click to expand...

dunking it will be the best thing. I worked up the nerve to dunk my very first bag after reading this: http://forum.purseblog.com/coach/two-70s-80s-made-nyc-bags-going-through-658823.html Then read through this thread for piping repair. There's so much info if you have the time to read through this thread
 
#2,579
I could be wrong here, but I have in my head that carnauba wax is what you use on cars to get that lovely shine! How funny would that be - raiding the car wash aisle

katev said:
Sorry to hear of the problems, I would try using a little fabric glue that is approved for leather (you can get it a fabric store, or hobby store, or maybe even a hardware store). I would apply the glue and let it dry before conditioning.

Blackrocks has some kind of wax in it that supposedly is the reason it darkens bags a bit. I will try and find the information for you. LadyRaven says that Obenauf's also darkens the leather, is that available in Australia? Is there a tack shop near you? They may have the products you need.

Edit: Here is the link for blackrocks it contains carnauba wax -whatever that is!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Blackrock-Leather-N-Rich/133531666682247?sk=info
Click to expand...
 
#2,580
I had the best day today.... my husband told me that he had some extra unexpected money, and that we could do whatever I wanted to do. Well, I asked nicely if we could please go to Savers, because I figured I never find anything there anyway, so it would just be a fun trip to walk around. Well, today was my lucky day because I found two Coach bags and three Dooney and Bourke. I have never had a Dooney before, and after looking at the details on the hardware and the way they are made, I think I like them. Anyone ever rehabbed one??

This is one of the Coach bags (not this exact one, but same model and color), the other is a black Willis that is missing the strap...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/COACH-03-RE...H_Handbags&hash=item4ab545e983#ht_1107wt_1123

Here is the same model and color of one of the Dooney and Bourke bags:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-DOO...ccessories&hash=item4ab723220b#ht_1180wt_1123

And another one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-All...H_Handbags&hash=item2ebd3dc8a7#ht_6759wt_1026

And the last one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-DOO...WH_Handbags&hash=item2a1c7dfb01#ht_500wt_1140
 
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